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The dimension X was clearly.. something. And seeing Michelangelo being so smart was something else. He was never viewed as actually smart by his brothers. Always the one messing up, getting them into trouble, having to hear the plan more than twice to barely understand it at the end. Mikey was their cute, naive and very, very dumb little brother. But it changed when they found him in Dimension X. It was like he grew smart, like that place was made for him, like he spent his whole life there.
“Couple hours” he said, dismissing his previous statement of being there for a couple of months. “Don't have a watch” he said. It felt like he knew exactly how much time he spent there but didn't want to disturb his brothers, and if he didn't want to talk, they wouldn't be the ones to ask.
But Donnie couldn't sleep thinking about all the possibilities. How long was Mickey really there? How did he adapt? Mostly important, Donnie was sure Michelangelo was now the older brother.
It was simple math that no one else seemed to take two seconds to take. Or maybe they just didn't want to admit that their little brother wasn't as little anymore.
Donatello got up from his bed, giving up on sleeping. Is not like his mind would give him a break anyways, and he was starting to feel hungry. As he made his way to the kitchen in the middle of the night, the engines in his brains kept working. He was so into his thoughts that he didn't even realized that sloppy little Mickey was sitting at the kitchen counter stealing the last pieces of frozen pizza.
“Night, Dee” Michelangelo said with a smile and a guilty expression, like he was caught doing something wrong.
Donnie waved a hand and smiled softly, looking at the fridge, hunting for something to eat. “Couldn't sleep?” He asked, making his way to the drawer to take coffee powder. He was a picky eater, and nothing available felt really full-feeling for him.
“Not used to sleeping a lot anymore” The little one said, and just as the words left his mouth, Donnie could see his hand drifting to his mouth, like he said something wrong.
Donatello paused and looked at his brother for a few seconds. For once the engines in his mind seemed to completely stop and he didn't know how to put them to work anymore.
“What do you mean?” Donatello said in a serious tone, looking directly at Mikey for a moment. The freckled turtle was definitely the one who used to sleep the most, lazing around like he didn't have a worry in the world. Mikey scoffed and avoided Donnie's gaze. Then he smiled in dismiss.
“I mean.. I've been getting insomnia lately, nothing to worry about” But Donnie didn't buy it. He stepped closer — as close as his sense of personal space allowed — and put his hand on the little one’s shoulder.
“Mikey.. You know you can tell me everything, right? I promise I won't be mad” Donatello tried his best to sound as emphatic and supportive as he possibly could. He wasn't good at expressing his emotions calmly. He was constantly on edge of extremes, but now he needed to appear trustworthy for his little brother.
Michelangelo pressed his lips together, looking at his big brother with hesitation. Donnie could hear his mind racing as he thought of every possible outcome — In a Mikey way of thinking.
“Sleeping wasn't easy in Dimension X..” When he finally said something, it was in a very low and insecure voice. He couldn't look at anything but the floor. Donnie took a step closer, still being careful not to overstep his brother's boundaries.
“If I ask you a question, do you promise to be honest with me, Mikey?” Donatello asked firmly, his mind racing and forming multiple plans of actions to every response his little brother could give. As Michelangelo nodded in agreement, he took a deep breath and finally asked what he's been thinking for the past week. “How long did you actually stayed in Dimension X?”
The only sound they could hear was the sewer’s, like a non stoppable river. It was very low, but Mikey had quieted and Donnie was waiting for answers.
“2 years..” A voice, even lower than the sewers, came from Michelangelo's mouth. Donnie took one step back, looking at his young brother, who was looking down, shrunken and ready to burst into tears.
“2 YEARS?!” Donnie didn't meant to yell, and when he saw Mikey flinching, he felt like the worst person in the world. “Sorry.. sorry..”
The two turtles stayed in silence for a couple of minutes, not knowing what to talk, or even if they should say something at all. Donatello's mind was a mess of thoughts that he didn't knew how to manage. He needed to say something, he needed to collect information and assure Mikey that everything was okay, but he was a man of science. Their therapist was Michelangelo, not him.
“I'm going to lay down. Night, Dee” Mikey finally said something, still looking at the floor, as he jumped from the kitchen counter and started to pass through Donnie's side. The older brother grabbed his hand firmly. He couldn't let go of Mikey. Not now.
“How did you endured two years in that place?” Mikey finally looked at him. But not with the warm puppy eyes Donnie was expecting. No, Michelangelo was full of hate.
“I know you dudes think I'm the dumbest person alive..” The little one started, voice full of years of repressed feelings. “But I am actually smart. I can take care of myself.”
Donnie shook his head and hands at the same time, as if he was trying to correct himself. “I didn't meant it that way!” He exclaimed. “I mean, like.. As much as you guys drive me crazy, I don't think I can stay long without you. Especially 2 years”
Mikey sighed and looked at the floor again. Back to the puppy eyes. “I thought you and the others had forgotten about me..”
Donatello could hear his own heart breaking as he heard his little brother’s words. Mikey was tearing up, and he felt he himself was about to.
“How could you ever think we could live a day without you, Mikey?” Donnie’s voice was cracking. He definitely wasn't good at verbalizing his own feelings, but he knew it was necessary.
Mikey looked at him, as if waiting for him to continue.
“To be honest, it's pretty obvious we'd be lost without you. Who do you think would make the jokes? Raph?” He scoffed along with the little turtle. “Not counting that you make the best food, and.. you are our little brother.” Donnie looked away for a second, then directly at his brother’s direction. “I know we are not fair with you most of the time, but you're the best little bro we could ask for”
He wanted to say more. To say that Mikey wasn't as dumb as they played him to be, to say that without him cheering the brother's up they'd definitely fall into madness, that they all downplayed him because they wanted to protect him, that Mikey was much more than the brothers verbalized, and that he was happy that Mikey existed to get him out of the lab from time to time, even if it was for being screamed of. That without his little brother Donnie probably wouldn't stand Raph and Leo.
But he couldn't. He wasn't good at verbalizing, so he said only a fraction of what he felt. Michelangelo knew how hard it was for Donnie to say even the smallest things, so he smiled. Like a weight was being taken down his shoulders, and so he hugged Donnie.
Donatello was taken aback for a second, but he hugged his brother back with all his strength.
“Wait. This means you're now 17?” Donnie's genius side couldn't stay quiet anymore. Mikey started laughing as he got out of the embrace. Donnie looked at his little brother's smile and couldn't help but smile too. This was the Mikey he knew.
“I guess?” Mikey shrugged, looking at Donnie. “Do you wanna hear about my incredible adventures, Dee?”
Donatello wanted to know everything, to ask a million questions, and by Mikey’s excitement, it felt like he wanted to talk non stop until the sun rose. “I'm gonna grab a pen and paper to write everything down. Prepare the coffee” He winked and left for his lab.
As he made his way back to the kitchen he could see Mikey's little tail bouncing in excitement, like he was waiting to talk to someone about it for a long time. Donnie smiled. His little brother never ceased to comfort him in his little gestures.
When Donnie sat at the table Mikey put a cup of coffee in front of him. “For the scientist. And this one's for me!” He picked the last piece of pizza and stuffed it in his mouth.
Then Mikey started talking. He talked about his marvelous adventures, about the first days struggles, about the lonely thoughts, about everything he could think of, not always in a linear way. As Donnie listened and eventually wrote his observations, he felt relief. Relief that after all this mess, Mikey was now at home.